According to the National Retail Federation, US retailers lost $9.6 billion in 2006 and $10.8 billion in 2007 to return fraud. Return fraud refers to the practice of criminals taking advantage of retailers return policies, by seeking cash or credit for stolen goods. A type of return fraud is the practice known as “wardrobing”, which while not illegal has a substantial impact on retailers. Wardrobing is the practice of purchasing garments or apparel, using them, and then returning them to the store for a refund. A major problem with wardrobing is that it can strip the retailer of the most popular size, colors and styles so that honest consumers cannot purchase the goods. Auditioning is another form of return fraud in which a person purchases an item, such as a computer or radio, using the item and then returning the item to a store for a refund. Often, the retailer cannot resell these goods and instead may either have to discard the goods or resell the goods at deep discounts. “Price arbitrage” consists of buying an item that looks similar but has a lower price, then returning the cheaper item as though it was a more expensive item. The foregoing practices unfortunately cause retailers to raise prices.
Flexible cable devices for use as securing devices and anti-theft devices are well known. Examples include U.S. Pat. No. 4,540,092 to Desantis, U.S. Pat. No. 4,956,982 to Valley, U.S. Pat. No. 5,016,758 to Ward, U.S. Pat. No. 4,986,457 to Faris, U.S. Pat. No. 5,151,684 to Johnsen and U.S. Pat. No. 5,154,072 to Leyden, all of which are incorporated herein in their entirety. The previously mentioned references represent devices that are not designed for removal from the retail establishment nor are they designed to allow removal by the consumer. The devices disclosed in these references are typically metal cables or such that are designed to prevent theft from the retail establishment and are always removed before a purchased item leaves the store. The relatively high cost of these devices precludes the notion that they would ever be taken home by the consumer and discarded.
The Loss Prevention Research Council, in conjunction with The Retail Equation announced “Customer Returns in the Retail Industry” survey results. Using 2007 retail data and 2008 survey results, the study revealed that return fraud and abuse is a $15.5 billion problem. The majority of retailers (64%) report that focusing on reducing refund fraud is a high priority.
While many devices have been created to prevent shoplifting, little or no attention has been paid to the area of wardrobing and auditioning. Hence, there remains a need for an effective method of curtailing this practice. The present invention is intended to curtail the issues associated with this problem.